I'm a mom who writes books in her spare time: translation--I hide in the bathroom with my laptop and lock the door while the kids destroy the house and smear peanut butter on the walls. I was born in Utah but lived in Kansas until I was 13, in Texas until I was 18, and attended college in Hawaii—studying marine biology. I'm now back in Utah--"happy valley". I'm married to a wonderful husband, James, and we are currently raising 6 rambunctious children. My interests are reading, writing (of course), martial arts, visual arts, creating Halloween props, and spending time with family.
I signed with Clean Teen Publishing in 2013. My first published book Rising, quickly hit the best-seller lists and has maintained its status on those lists since it's release in September 2013. The sequel in The Rising Series titled, Descending, was released in late March 2014. It also hit best-seller status--reaching all the way to #1 in Mythology on Amazon.
It's 1792 and Hope is on the run. She finds shelter in a glen called Sleepy Hollow. Luck is with her as the town is unexpectedly looking for a new teacher and Hope is hired for the job.
Unfortunately, not everything is looking up for her. Not only is the mayor out to get her fired and the local witch determined to slice her up and brew her organs into potions, but hidden under the floorboards of her quaint little cabin, she finds a man. His name is Conall.
Conall is demanding, he's ornery, and though he has undeniably handsome features, he is missing something of vital importance...
His body.
Q&A with the Author:
1. When did you start writing,
and was there a specific event or person who influenced you to become an
author? I started on a whim after reading a scene
that was cut from Stephanie Meyer's Twilight book. It was actually pretty bad.
I thought, "I can write better than that." I was wrong. But by the
time I realized it, I had fallen in love with writing. Six years later, my
writing got better and my first book, Rising, was published.
2. Are you currently working
on a project, and if so, can you tell us anything about it? I am working
on a spin-off of my Rising series called The Lost Gods Series. This series has
demigods, gods, and other mythological creatures. It is geared toward young
adult readers who love paranormal romance.
3. What is your favorite
writing snack? I'm currently trying to lose
weight, but if dreams were real, Peanut M&M's would have no calories and I
would eat them by the bag full as I write.
4. If you could have dinner
with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? Why? What food would
you serve? I would have dinner with Xanthus and his
friends from my Rising series. As Dagonians, they only eat freshly killed fish.
And it's proper eating etiquette to rip off the fish's head before consuming
it. I think this would really be a sight to see.
5. Did you learn anything from
writing your book and what was it? I
learned a great deal of early American history. One thing that was truly sad
came about when I wanted a Native American character in my book. I researched
the natives that lived in the area of Sleepy Hollow. To my horror, I found out
that they had all been wiped out by the white men. The tribe native to that
area was called the Weckquaesgeck Indians, and every last man, woman, and child
was killed by the white men before the setting of my book in 1792.That's simply
heart-breaking.
6. How do you relax, or what
do you enjoy doing when you are not writing? I
don't relax often. Right now I'm back in college studying to be an English
teacher. I also have six kids and a hobby that both my husband and I
share--building Halloween props for our haunted house. We usually average about
a thousand trick-or-treaters at our house every Halloween.
7.
What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it? I
guess you could say, I dream of being able to teach and encourage young people
to write and discover the joy of creating your own story. And I'm working on my
teaching degree with about a year left until I graduate.
8. What do you fear most? I
have a terrible fear of heights. But there's a twist to it. I'm not afraid for
myself, I'm afraid anytime my family members are up high. I will not let my
husband hang Christmas lights on the house. I can do it, but not anyone I love.
9. What was your favorite
Halloween Costume? My favorite costume I've worn is when I dressed as a corpse
with an apple on top of my head and a bullet hole in my forehead. Yeah, I'm
just a tad twisted.
